


Maid of Honor

by whoneedsapublisher



Category: Highway Blossoms (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/F, Weddings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-19
Updated: 2018-10-31
Packaged: 2019-05-08 19:12:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14700447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whoneedsapublisher/pseuds/whoneedsapublisher
Summary: Amber takes Marina back to Zion to ask her the most important question she's ever asked. Afterwards, she asks Mariah a question she never thought she would. Published in honour of the Highway Blossoms remastered edition being released on Steam.





	1. Maid of Honor

“Almost… there!” Marina called from up ahead, taking a deep breath between the words.

Normally, this would be a relief. The climb to Angel’s Landing was a nightmare- long, steep, and difficult. Amber had hoped that she’d just found the trek miserable last time because she’d been feeling pretty miserable on her own terms, but it turned out that her mood hadn’t been the only source of pain on the trail. It really was just a hard walk.

But even the prospect of not having to walk any more on this mountain wasn’t enough to outweigh Amber’s nerves at the prospect of actually reaching the summit. Or, more accurately, what came with it. It had been on her mind all morning. She was sure that Marina had noticed how nervous she was, but so far, she hadn’t mentioned it. She could be surprisingly tactful.

That was something Amber had noticed later than she should have. When they’d first met, Amber had mentally classified Marina as childish and oblivious. And while she could be a little immature, Amber had noticed that she was actually quite observant and empathetic. She just chose not to show it much.

Or maybe Amber was just the oblivious one.

Either way, Marina was content to approach the hike with unbridled enthusiasm despite Amber’s preoccupation. Amber just hoped that Marina hadn’t managed to guess what she was preoccupied _with_. She really wanted it to be a surprise.

The trail was starting to level out, and Amber’s heart sped up for reasons entirely unrelated to the workout she was getting. They were getting close to the landing.

 _Please let it be clear_. Amber prayed silently. _Please don’t be overcast._

The heavy fog that they’d encountered the last time was nowhere to be found, but there’d been some worrying clouds when they entered the park, and from this far up the air could be clear at their level while still being dreary in the valleys to ruin the view.

And Amber wanted all this to go perfectly.

So it was with no small amount of trepidation that Amber accepted Marina’s outstretched hand and walked towards the edge of the landing with her.

It was… beautiful.

At only a glance, Amber understood in an instant why Gramps had wanted so badly to come here. The view was astounding. Miles and miles of park stretched out beneath them, verdantly green in enough hues to shame a paint catalogue. The jutting peaks surrounding it with their dull red tones only served to highlight the intensity of the greens in between. It was almost like looking down on a river that had been transformed into an instant from water to trees, the tops shifting in the breeze like waves across a vast sea.

“Wow…” Marina whispered next to her, and Amber felt she couldn’t have put it better.

For a moment, she simply stood there and took in the view. But she knew she couldn’t delay it forever. Now came the moment of truth. Amber took a deep breath and squeezed her hand around the small box in her pocket.

“Hey Mare,” she said, trying and utterly failing to sound casual. “I have a question for you.”

Marina tore her eyes away from the view to look at her quizzically.

“What is it, Amber?” she asked.

Disentangling their hands, Amber slipped down onto one knee and pulled the box out of her pocket.

“Will you marry me?”

* * *

It was two weeks ago when Amber first decided she was going to propose.

There wasn’t any grand moment that provoked it. She didn’t make her after meeting Marina’s eye over a candlelit dinner, or after seeing her in a breathtaking dress, or even after they made love. It was just a normal morning, with Marina settling down in the passenger seat as they prepared for another day of driving. Amber looked over at her, and all of a sudden she realized that she loved Marina more than anything else, and she there was nothing she wanted more than to have Marina there with her for the rest of their lives.

Once she’d realized it, she started planning the proposal.

Getting the rings had been the hardest part. They were so rarely apart that keeping a secret was tricky, especially if it involving going to buy something. In the end, she’d claimed they should buy birthday presents for each other while they were in a big city, and the two had agreed to split up for a few hours.

She had ended up getting simple gold bands. It was classical, but Amber felt they held a special significance for the two of them. Gold had brought them together in the first place, after all.

The location had been easier. She’d considered Shiprock, or Fire Wave, or even trying to find the rock in the middle of nowhere that she’d first seen Marina by, but a better location occurred to her. The best part was, it was one that returning to wouldn’t arouse suspicion. Angel’s Landing.

The last time they'd been to Zion had been… unpleasant. Tense. The cookout in the evening had been a saving grace, but in general it hadn’t gone well. So when Amber said that the forecast for Zion was good, Marina had been totally on board for giving it another try. To try and see the sight that Gramps had wanted to show her, with her new family.

Amber still felt a tinge of guilt at the idea. It felt like replacing Gramps, going there with her instead of him. But she couldn't believe he wouldn’t be happy for her. He was too loving to want her to be miserable forever. She should have realized that before.

Marina had helped her realize it. Marina had helped her realize a lot of things. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t help but feel like she was the one benefiting more from their relationship, in so many ways. Even if she didn't see it as using Marina any more,she still felt the same feeling of… exploitation, sometimes. That getting this much and giving so little couldn't be fair. Maybe she'd never be able to fully chase away those doubts. But what she didn't doubt any more were two very important things: Marina could make her own choices, and Marina wanted to be with her. As long as that was true… well, maybe it didn't have to matter so much who came out ahead in the arrangement.

Those thoughts had been with her when they'd started the hike, but as they climbed higher and higher, those worries started to fade away as a bigger one loomed.

How would Marina respond?

* * *

The first word out of Marina’s mouth was “No”. Amber realized in that split second that she’d never actually planned for that. As much as she’d dreaded Marina’s reaction, she’d never seriously thought she’d turn her down. She’d just unconsciously assumed that Marina would say yes.

“-way!” Marina continued, holding her hands up to her mouth as tears appeared in the corner of her eyes. “Oh my god, I can’t believe it! Yes! Yes, I’ll marry you, Amber!”

Luckily for Amber’s heart, she was only confronted with that realization for the briefest of moments before the “Yes” followed and Marina wrapped her arms tightly around her neck, crying happy tears into her shoulder. Amber hugged her back, feeling tears prick at her own eyes.

She’d said yes. Marina not only loved her enough to date her, she loved her enough to marry her. How was it that she’d managed to find multiple burial sites of a lost miner’s treasure before anyone else, and yet that wasn’t even the luckiest thing that happened to her?

Marina pulled back and wiped at her eyes, smiling widely at Amber. Amber smiled back and took her hand, slipping the ring onto it. Marina admired it, turning her hand back and forth to see it from all the angles, the smile never leaving her face. Amber slipped the matching ring onto her own finger and then tapped it gently against Marina’s.

“Guess we match now,” she said, her voice shaky with emotion. Marina’s smile got even wider and she embraced Amber again, burying her head in Amber’s chest and clinging tightly to her as Amber held her close, knowing she wouldn’t ever have to let go.

Well, metaphorically. In a literal sense, she eventually did.

But not for a while.

* * *

That evening, under the clear sky and twinkling stars, Amber and Marina were side by side in front of a crackling fire, just like the last time they’d been to Zion. This time, though, there was no need for hesitant head resting or carefully measured contact. Amber had her arm snugly around Marina’s waist, and Marina was leaning into her contentedly. For a little while, they just stayed like that, watching the fire.

Marina was the first to speak.

“Are we really getting married, Amber?” she asked quietly. Amber still didn't quite believe it herself.

“That's the plan, babe,” Amber replied.

“Do you know anything about planning a wedding?”

“No.”

“Me either.”

They lapsed into silence again.

Amber pulled out a bag of marshmallows and passed it to Marina, who eagerly opened it and speared a few marshmallows, shoving it into the fire. Amber smiled at her purposefully setting them on fire.

“Maybe we don’t have to know much about planning if we keep the ceremony small,” Marina suggested, blowing out a marshmallow and popping it into her mouth with a tiny noise of pleasure.

“What, like going down to the courthouse and just doing the paperwork, you mean?” Amber asked. That was definitely not what she would have expected from Marina.

It turned out her impression wasn’t that far wrong, as Marina pouted a little. “Not quite _that_ small,” she said.”We still have to wear dresses. I want to see you in a wedding dress.”

Amber blinked. She’d sort of figured on doing the tuxedo affair. She wasn’t quite as butch as some girls, sure, but she definitely wasn’t someone who did dresses very often. She wasn’t even sure that she owned any dresses that fit any more. Or even any skirts. Maybe she could still squeeze into that awful “sunday best” outfit she’d had for school events.

“I figured I’d wear the tux and you’d wear the dress.” To her surprise, Marina shook her head fervently.

“No!” she insisted. “You’re beautiful, Amber. You deserve to get married in a wonderful wedding dress.”

Amber flushed a little and busied herself with fishing her marshmallow out of the flames.

“Okay,” she said, blowing out the little flame still burning on the marshmallow. It was always hard to say no to Marina, and now was no exception. She supposed she wasn’t really that attached to getting married in a tux, honestly. It wasn’t something she _wanted_ to do, it just seemed like what she’d _have_ to do. Like it was the role left for her to fill. All her girlfriends had been a little more feminine than her, even before Marina, and while she hadn’t consciously thought of marrying any of them, at some point she’d subconsciously started thinking of herself as the groom.

But Marina didn’t see her that way. It made Amber a little happy. She leaned over and kissed Marina, and Marina happily returned it, and the two of them were distracted from marshmallows for a little while.

* * *

Once they were back in the RV and sitting comfortably on the couch, another question occurred to Amber.

“Hey Marina?”

“Hmm?” Marina asked, looking up from her comfortable position nestled into Amber’s shoulder.

“Was there anyone else you were thinking of inviting, other than your family?”

“Well…” Marina said, putting her finger to her chin in contemplation. “I was thinking Tess could be a flower girl…”

“What?” Amber gave her an incredulous look. “You’re inviting the trio?”

“Of course!” Marina said, all smiles. When she looked like that, Amber had trouble arguing with her.

There was another reason she didn’t object too strongly to the notion, too. A very strange one. But she didn’t want to think about that just yet.

“Do you know where they even are?” Amber asked instead.

Marina nodded. “I spoke to Tess the other day. They were checking out a lost money truck around Carlin.”

“Again?” Amber asked. “Are you sure Mariah isn’t just trying to take up armed robbery?”

Marina giggled. “I think Joe would probably stop her if she went _that_ far,” she said, and Amber was forced to agree. As much as Joe didn’t do as much she would have liked to keep Mariah in check, he did seem to stop her from getting _too_ out of control.

They lapsed into a comfortable silence for a while, snuggled up together in the comfort of their home. Just when Amber was considering if they should head to bed soon, Marina spoke up.

“Amber…” she said, hesitantly. “Is it… going to be okay that I’ll have more family there?”

Amber thought about it for a moment.

It was true. Even if Marina only invited her immediate family, she’d have nearly a dozen people. Amber, meanwhile, had no siblings and no desire to invite either of her parents, even assuming they’d bother to respond to an invitation. Amber suspected her mother might not attend Amber’s wedding even if it wasn’t out of state, and her father… well, even if she _could_ contact him, she wouldn’t want to.

“It’s fine,” she said, giving Marina a reassuring squeeze. “Besides, you said I could share your family, right? So lend me a couple of a bridesmaids.”

“Okay,” Marina said, smiling. “Do you want one of them to be your maid of honor?”

Amber shifted awkwardly. “I, uh, actually had someone else in mind…”

Marina looked up at her curiously. “Really?” she asked. “Who?"

* * *

“Will you be my maid of honor?”

Judging by the look on Mariah’s face, it was not the question she had been expecting from Amber. That was fair enough, since it wasn’t a question Amber had ever expected to ask her.

“What is this, some kind of joke?” Mariah asked, crossing her arms.

Before Amber could respond, Mariah held up a hand. “No, wait, I know what this is. The ditz put you up to this, right? Trying to mend bridges or something? Trying to make us all buddy-buddy cause she wants the squirt to throw flowers?”

“Stop calling her a ditz,” Amber snapped. God, this was such a bad idea. Why had she ever thought this was going to work out. “Look, I’m not saying I don’t hate you, but…”

Amber shoved her hands in her pockets and looked to the side awkwardly. “If it wasn’t for you I’d be sulking over a tape in the desert while Marina took a bus home. I sort of felt like I owed you for us getting together.”

Mariah glared at her. “You felt like you owed me, so you offered to let me take up a pain in the ass role in your stupid wedding? If you owe me something, maybe you should give me back my treasure.”

Amber rolled her eyes. “I don’t owe you _that_ much. Look, do you want to do it or not?”

Mariah looked at her critically. “Don’t you have, I don’t know, _literally anyone else_ to ask?”

Amber shifted uncomfortably.

Mariah narrowed her eyes. “You _don’t_ , do you?” she accused. “You don’t know anyone out west at all, do you? It’s between me and the slacker, isn’t it?”

“Look, I wasn’t so close with anyone back east that I could ask them to come all the way out to California, alright? It was just me and Gramps,” Amber replied defensively. “If you’re going to be as much of an ass about this as I should have known you would be, I can find someone else.”

“I’ll do it,” Mariah said, smirking. “But only because you’re so pathetic that I feel sorry for you.”

“Is that something you should be saying when I’m the one getting married?” Amber shot back.

Mariah snorted. “It’s something I should be saying _even more_ because of that. What kind of sucker pays the government to confirm that they’re in love and makes it that much harder to split if things go bad?”

“You said you were going to marry Joe in ten years if he was still single,” Amber said.

“Okay, first, you’re not allowed to use things I say when I’m drunk against me,” Mariah said, pointing at her accusingly. “And anyway, that was a metaphor. I didn’t mean I’d actually bother with getting married. Let alone throwing an actual ceremony like some kind of suburban housewife celebrating the end of anything exciting in her life.”

She narrowed her eyes again. “How much are you even paying for this? How much of my gold are you wasting gloating about your girlfriend?”

“Fiancée,” Amber corrected, smirking at her. The word still felt strange in her mouth, but it made her heart flutter a little.

“Whatever! You know what, I don’t even want to know,” Mariah said. “I’m sure you’re wasting way too much of it. You know, if _I’d_ gotten the treasure, I would have spent it on important things.”

“What, like booze?” Amber asked incredulously.

“Are you saying that’s not more important than…” Mariah paused. “...than whatever makes weddings so expensive. Overpriced cakes?”

Amber shrugged. Honestly, it still confused her how weddings ended up being so expensive too. Hers and Marina’s was a fairly intimate affair, so it wasn’t exactly breaking the bank, but apparently most did.

Mariah didn’t need to know that, though. Let her stew in her rage over how her gold was being “misspent” on cakes.

“There’s free drinks at the wedding anyway,” Amber said.

“Why didn’t you say that first?” Mariah asked.

“I thought maybe I could appeal to whatever remains of your heart,” Amber said, scowling.

“Ha! Rookie mistake. The slacker’s tried that one plenty of times, and it’s never gotten him anywhere!” Mariah said triumphantly. Only she would be proud of that.

Amber once again reflected on the fact that she had voluntarily chosen this woman to be her maid of honor instead of having Joseph as a best man.

But… in the end, there was something undeniable between the two of them. Nothing romantic- Amber made a face at even the thought of _that_ \- but something. Regardless of how things happened, they’d had a begrudging friendliness, even if it was mostly driven by the other three forcing them together. As much as they didn’t like each other… Well, Amber wouldn’t want Mariah to end up dead in the desert, and Mariah felt the same. Probably. Well, maybe.

And more importantly than that… Mariah had, truthfully, saved Amber and Marina’s relationship. If Mariah hadn’t chewed Amber out when she stumbled into her trailer after making a series of mistakes and almost losing Marina, it would have been more than “almost”. Amber would have never seen Marina again, and spent her life moping and working off a huge debt. Whatever Mariah had wrong with her… well, maybe she wasn’t all bad.

“I don’t have to give a speech or anything, right?” Mariah asked.

“God no,” Amber replied. “The last thing I want at my wedding is you talking about how nauseating it is.”

“Hey! I wouldn’t do that!” Mariah said, and Amber raised a skeptical eyebrow.

Mariah rubbed the back of her head and didn’t meet Amber’s eye. “Look, I still think Marina’s a ditz and you’re a dumbass, and that this whole wedding this is a huge waste of money, _and_ that you’re both dirty thieves-” So far, Mariah was not doing much to convince Amber. “-but, you know, as far as like, a couple? You’re not that bad. I think you guys will probably work out.”

Amber stared at her in disbelief. Of all the things she’d expected to happen in this little meeting, Mariah honestly endorsing their relationship certain wasn’t high on her list.

“Don’t look at me like that. I still don’t like you,” Mariah said.

“Yeah,” Amber said, grinning. “I don’t like you either.”

Clapping Mariah on the shoulder, she turned to leave, opening the door to Mariah’s RV and letting the hot desert air hit her as she turned to wave goodbye.

“See you at the wedding.”

“Yeah, sure,” Mariah said, not bothering to wave back. “Just make sure there’s booze.”

* * *

Amber was panicking.

It almost seemed cliché. If she wasn’t terrified, she might have been able to laugh at the whole situation. Getting cold feet right before walking down the aisle? Wasn’t that what happened with every TV wedding?

Amber was quickly coming to realize that the reason it came up so much was less “recycled scripts” and more “being given an hour in a small room staring in a mirror to overthink every choice you’d ever made.”

“Oh my god, I’m making a huge mistake,” she said. “I never should have proposed this. We’re too young! We haven’t even been dating that long! And I don’t even deserve her-”

“Will you _shut up_?”

Amber turned to glare at the other person in her dressing room. Mariah looked incredibly out of place in the dress Marina had picked out for her, and the way she was sitting suggested she wasn’t much used to wearing dresses. Not that Amber could blame her for that- she wasn’t exactly at the height of comfort in the frilly thing that she’d ended up in. Marina’s sister had insisted that Marina would love it. Amber had to admit she liked it too, even if it felt alien to wear something like this. But being angry at Mariah? That wasn’t new or unusual at all.

Mariah seemed unimpressed with her annoyance. “You’re being a dumbass again,” she said, leaning back in her chair. “None of that shit you’re whining about matters. You love the ditz, she loves you, so just go out and there and say ‘I do’ or whatever.”

Amber wasn’t sure what was more infuriating- Mariah’s flippant comment, or the fact that it was actually making her feel better.

“I said it before, didn’t I? You two are a good match. You’ll be fine,” Mariah said, waving her hand dismissively. “So stop embarrassing yourself.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Also, if you forced me into this getup for no reason, I will make sure no one ever finds your body.”

Amber rolled her eyes, but she could already feel her pulse slowing. The normalcy of Mariah’s sour mood and bad attitude was oddly soothing. Maybe she hadn’t been a terrible choice after all.

“If you’re so worried about people embarrassing themselves, maybe you should figure out how to sit in a chair while wearing a dress,” Amber shot back, crossing her arms.

Mariah snorted. “What, I’m supposed to care if one of Marina’s stupid cousins gets a peek or something? Aren’t I going to be standing the whole time anyway?”

Amber had to admit she had a point. There was one issue though. “They’re not her cousins. They’re all siblings.”

Mariah looked at her in disbelief. “No way, there were like a dozen of them.”

Amber nodded. “Nine, including her.”

Mariah let out a low whistle.

“That’s a big family.”

Mariah tactfully made no comment about the lack of Amber’s family. Maybe what little empathy she had was kicking in, given her relationship with her own mother.

There was a knock at the door, and a voice called through it.

“Amber? It’s time.”

Amber swallowed. This was it.

* * *

They were having their wedding in the desert, of course. They’d found a little chapel not far from Zion, and while it wasn’t the most typical wedding spot, their guest list was short enough not to cause any issues.

There were rows of folding chairs set up, filled with Marina’s family and Joseph, along with a few kindly people in the area that Marina had befriended during the preparations. At the head of the small cluster of seating was an arch of flowers, and standing to the right of it was...

Marina.

Marina had insisted that neither of them see the other in their dress before the event. Rather than picking out a dress for Amber, who was resolute in her insistence that she wouldn’t know what to look for, she had enlisted her family for help. At the time, Amber had thought it was a silly tradition, but now she was almost glad for it. Seeing Marina in her dress for the first time was breathtaking.

It wasn’t quite as… frilly as Amber’s. It was still long and flowing, though. While Amber’s was somewhat form fitting, sitting snug against her hips, Marina’s dress petered off into a long loose skirt at the waist. It suited her perfectly, and Amber realized again just how beautiful she was.

Marina turned to look at her, and Amber saw her eyes widen as well. Apparently she wasn’t the only one struck speechless.

She eventually remembered she was supposed to be walking. There was no one to give her away, but she didn’t mind, striding down the aisle with a confidence she couldn’t really feel. She was still worried that this might be a mistake.

Then she reached the altar, and turned to look into Marina’s eyes, and her doubts vanished.

In those eyes, she didn’t see any doubts, or regrets, or fear that Amber might not be enough for her. All she saw was deep and passionate love.

She barely even heard the preacher until he got to the part of his speech that she recognised as the prompt to their vows.

Neither of them was much of a writer, but they’d tried to write at least some kind of vows. After all, Marina’s plan for them had been to start writing travel brochures, and she’d cheerfully pointed out that if they were going to be writing professionally, they should start practicing, right?

Amber still wasn’t sure how much overlap there was between writing wedding vows and describing scenic canyons, but it couldn’t hurt.

“Marina,” she started shakily, trying to stay calm. “You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I promise to love and care for you for as long as we live. I promise to hold you close and let you know how much I love you. And I promise that no matter what, I’ll do my best to protect you and help you. And to let you protect and help me.”

Marina smiled at the last part, tears coming to her eyes.

“Amber, meeting you was so unlikely, but I guess that just means I’m lucky. I’m glad that you stopped to pick me up, and I’m glad you didn’t just leave me at shiprock. I love you, and I promise that I’ll always love you and stay with you wherever you go. And I’ll always try to help you, even when you don’t know you need it.”

The priest spoke again.

“Do you, Amber Golley, take this woman, Marina Hale, to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

“I do,” Amber said.

“And do you, Marina Hale, take this woman, Amber Golley, to be your lawfully wedded wife, in sickness and in health, until death do you part?”

“I do,” Marina said, her voice quavering.

Tess walked up holding a cushion with their rings on it. While Amber had gotten gold rings for their engagement, they’d gone one step further with their wedding rings. They were actually cast out of the one of the nuggets from the treasure, and instead of a diamond, each had a perfectly cut and polished segment of a nugget.

“With this ring, I thee wed,” Amber said, slipping Marina’s ring onto her finger.

“With this ring, I thee wed,” Marina managed, but only barely. Her voice was almost breaking now as she struggled to keep in her emotions, and Amber had to admit she was pretty close to crying as well. As Marina fumbled with her hand, Amber gently laid a hand over Marina’s and met her eye.

“Don’t worry,” she whispered, and Marina smiled at her, managing to slip the ring on.

“By the power vested in me by the lord and by the state of Utah, I now pronounce you wife and wife. You may kiss the bride.”

It wasn’t the deepest kiss they’d ever shared. For that reason, it probably wasn’t _strictly_ the most passionate kiss they’d ever had. But even as they kept it chaste, the volume of feeling in the kiss certainly made it a memorable one, and a strong container for one of the most loving kisses either of them had ever experienced with anyone.

When they pulled back to applause and cheering- even Mariah seemed to be begrudgingly clapping, although not very enthusiastically- Marina stopped holding back and clung to Amber’s hands as tears flowed down her face.

“I can’t believe we’re actually married,” she whispered, as the officiant made his closing remarks.

Amber smiled back at her.

“C’mon, Mare, you’re gonna make _me_ cry,” she managed, knowing that she already was.

“That’s okay. You’re allowed to at your wedding, dad always said,” Marina replied, laughing a little.

“Alright, I guess I can trust him.”

Holding on tightly to each other’s hands, Amber and Marina turned to walk down the aisle again, together.

It would still be a while before the wedding was really over. Doubtless the reception would go on deep in to the night, and Amber suspected that Mariah would take sufficient advantage of the open bar that it would end up being a problem. But as she felt the cool metal of her wedding ring pressed against the matching band on her wife’s finger, Amber couldn’t help but feel like something had ended with that kiss, and something new had started.

With a full heart and a wide smile, Amber slowly walked towards her new life.

Hand in hand with her wife.


	2. Special Halloween Edition

“Oh my god, you did it! Congrats!”

Amber hadn’t really been the one who wanted a big ceremony, and stuff like this was a big reason why. It wasn’t like she didn’t want people  to know she’d married Marina, but being congratulated felt… awkward. Especially coming from… actually, who even was this? There were like a dozen people at this thing, how was there someone she didn’t know?

“Thank you! And thank you so much for coming!” Marina said excitedly. Her reactions were the one thing keeping Amber in this wedding, honestly. If Marina didn’t seem so genuinely happy to accept everyone’s good wishes, Amber would have scooped her up hours and ago and thrown her into the RV, then put her foot on the pedal until she was sure there was no one else they knew within ten miles.

“Hey, no problem!” the redhead said, grinning and giving Marina finger guns. “Anything for a fan! Also, I begged you to let me attend.”

“I’m sorry about…” the woman with her seemed to pause for a moment, as if trying to think of what to apologize for, and then just said. “...her.”

“Uh,” Amber said, not really sure what the polite way to ask ‘who the hell are you and why are you at my wedding’ was, and sure that Marina would be upset if she picked the obvious way.

“Sorry,” the blond woman said again, sighing. “I’m Maddie, and this is-”

“Tara Bryck, at your service!” the redhead interrupted, adopting a dramatic stance. “Star of Taranormal, in the flesh!”

“Taranor what…?”

“It’s a web show,” Marina explained, her eyes shining as she looked at Tara. “They investigate cryptids and supernatural occurrences! I sent them a picture of us at the world’s biggest thermometer! Don’t you remember the weird lights?”

“Weren’t those just fireworks?” Amber said skeptically.

“No way! That was _definitely_ some kind of alien,” Tara insisted. “Or maybe a ghost. Or bigfoot. Bigfoot loves fireworks.”

Amber glanced disbelievingly at Marina, who looked back at her eagerly.

“Amber, can you believe we caught an alien on film?”

“No,” Amber said, truthfully. “No, I definitely can’t.”

Maddie looked at her with the grateful look of a cynic finding a kindred spirit in an ocean of optimists.

“So, is Maddie your… girlfriend?” Amber guessed.

Tara and Maddie both made a face simultaneously.

“No,” Maddie said firmly. “I’m her manager. And editor.”

“Yeah, I love Maddie, but uh, ew,” Tara said. “Never again.”

Maddie’s eyes widened and she elbowed Tara. “Never _even once_ ,” she corrected. Ahh. Right. Amber hadn’t really had any ill-advised hookups with friends- mostly due to a lack of friends to hook up with, really- but she recognised a “moment everyone would rather forget” incident when she saw it.

“Anyway,” Maddie said hurriedly, eager to change the subject. “Thank you for inviting us. It was a beautiful ceremony.”

“Yeah, totally!” Tara said. “You guys are super cute! Can I get a photo?”

“What?” Amber said, at the same time as Marina said “Sure!”

Tara quickly zipped behind them, flopping an arm over each of their shoulders and tossing her phone to Maddie, who caught it after some panicked juggling.

“Say cheese!” Tara said, grinning widely.

* * *

“Hey Amber, what’s up?” Marina asked, laying a hand on her shoulder.

“Hmm?” Amber asked, looking up from the framed photo in her hand. “Oh, nothing. Just remembering our wedding.”

Marina glanced down at the picture and smiled. “It was nice of her to send us a copy,” she said. “I heard she got married too, actually.”

“Really?” Amber asked. Privately, she wondered what kind of saint would have the patience to tolerate Tara for that long.

“Yeah,” Marina said, and then paused. “She said Maddie got married too, but…”

“But?” Amber said.

“Well, um, she said Maddie married a ghost.”

Amber stared at her. Hadn’t Maddie been the sensible one? How did she end up with a _ghost_ as her wife?

“There’s a whole story, she sent me this big article,” Marina said, wandering over to the couch to get her laptop.

Amber glanced out the window at the starry sky. They were safely parked for the night. Warm mugs of hot chocolate sat steaming on the counter. And on her finger, her ring sat snugly against her skin. Well, what the heck. She could use a laugh.

“Alright, show me this story,” she said settling down next to Marina as Marina dug out the email. “I wanna know how the hell they met a ghost with romantic intent.”

“Let me just… ah! Here it is!” Marina said triumphantly. “Okay, here we go. The title Tara gave it was… The Heart of the Woods.”

 


End file.
